Untamed Skies - Where Science Meets Humanity: Owen Shieh at TEDxHonolulu

Owen Shieh is the Weather and Climate Program Coordinator at the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC) in Honolulu. As a meteorologist, his fascination with weather and storms began at an early age in Florida, where he frequently experienced the wrath of tropical storms and severe weather. He temporarily left the warmth of the tropics for the wintry cold of the Ivy League to study atmospheric science at Cornell University, where he graduated Magna cum Laude with distinction in research. For the next several years, Owen was selected to participate in VORTEX2, the largest government- funded tornado field program in history. After obtaining his M.S. in Meteorology from the University of Oklahoma, Owen moved to Hawaii in 2010 to pursue Ph.D. research at the University of Hawaii to improve tropical cyclone forecasting through collaboration with the U.S. Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Pearl Harbor. As the Weather and Climate Program Coordinator at the NDPTC, Owen brings his broad experiences across the field of meteorology to oversee the development of FEMA hazardous weather training courses that will be deployed across the United States. His vision is to build national resilience to natural hazards by enhancing a "whole community" discourse that combines scientific research, operational forecasting, emergency management training, public policy, and public awareness.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)